Coleman Hawkins is an award-winning Dan Bachman daylily, introduced in 2001 and hybridized in Ohio. Last summer my plant started blooming on July 9 and continued through August 16. Yes, really... I keep stats on all my daylilies. Knowing each plant's bloom time helps me decide where I place plants so I can achieve balanced bloom in my garden throughout the summer. It also makes decisions easier when it comes time to thin the herd. And just so you know, Coleman Hawkins is going nowhere. Gallop-on Coleman.
A week or two ago I transplanted "Coleman Hawkins" to a more prominent location so I can appreciate it even more next summer. This daylily is a must-have, especially if you live in a northern climate like I do. No special care required; just plant, keep the weeds away, and it blooms like crazy. The plant is super showy, large, and in-your-face beautiful. Registration data says that the flowers are 8 inches, but mine occasionally grow even larger -- bonus!
Coleman Hawkins is an award-winning Dan Bachman daylily, introduced in 2001 and hybridized in Ohio. Last summer my plant started blooming on July 9 and continued through August 16. Yes, really... I keep stats on all my daylilies. Knowing each plant's bloom time helps me decide where I place plants so I can achieve balanced bloom in my garden throughout the summer. It also makes decisions easier when it comes time to thin the herd. And just so you know, Coleman Hawkins is going nowhere. Gallop-on Coleman.
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Once a year at my work we write down our goals defining what we would like to achieve for the upcoming year. Our administrator assures us that for goals to happen, the first step is to write them down. I decided to try out this concept at home. For many years I wanted to create garden maps -- so the task went on my list. This fall was the turning point. Ange and I moved so many daylilies around that I lost track of where each plant was when we were done unless, of course, I walked right up to the plant and looked at the individual plant marker. This provided a good incentive for me to get going on this project.
I went online to get some ideas and see examples of what other gardeners do and what type of maps work well for them. Many people use graph paper with exact scale measurements. That sounded like unpleasant work that involved math! Really all I needed was a graphic representation of where each plant lives. So, after a few weeks of on-and-off mapping my 2016 garden maps are complete and I can happily cross that task off the list (the fun part). I was actually amazed how well the maps helped me coordinate what should get planted where according to each daylily's size, color, and bloom time. And I like to think it happened all because I had my goal written down. Important tip: Pencils, just pencils...and a thick eraser! Pictured is one of my very favorite coneflowers, 'Coconut Lime.' I love the green and white combination! This echinacea starts blooming in July and grows approximately 24" tall. And if you deadhead the old blooms, it will continue producing new ones all summer and into fall. Echinaceas love full sun, regular watering until they are established, and well-drained soil. The coneflower blooms look quite a bit like a daisy at first and over a week or two gradually transform into pom-poms with little white skirts. The bees and butterflies love them! And the really good news? The herds of deer by our home never go near them! Although my photo was taken in late September, Coconut Lime is still happily in full bloom today despite a couple of light frosts here in Wisconsin.
The genus name, Echinacea, comes from the Greek word echinos meaning hedgehog or sea-urchin in reference to the spiny center cone. Coconut Lime was introduced by AB Cultivars in the Netherlands approximately a decade ago. So not only is it beautiful, it's well-traveled...coming to us all the way from Europe! Echinacea Coconut Lime is pictured with Sedum ' Autumn Joy.' Last week I had a lively conversation with my friends. We were talking and laughing about the countless ways we have inflicted pain upon ourselves and been grossed-out, all in the name of gardening. It's what we refer to as "the dark side" of tending to our daylilies/flowers. Here are a few of our collective experiences. You may smile and nod your head with familiarity. And P.S., I'm not admitting to any specific event as being my own. Smile.
Gardening is just a little bit of yin and a whole bunch of yang. And that's why we still enjoy it! Pictured above: Daylily "Sharky's Revenge" It seems like there has been some kind of weird turkey population explosion and they've all ended up in our yard. They lounge on our driveway, in my daylily gardens, on our back steps, and in general, pretty much wherever they want to! They are huge, noisy, and have a whole bunch of babies. After their visit, we (more often than not) have to hose off the driveway for obvious reasons. Yuck!
I figured there had to be some sure-fire way to deter these birds from hanging in our yard. From the websites I visited, the most popular deterrent seems to be simply spraying them with a garden hose or purchasing a motion sensor water sprayer. Can their brain even remember this? The automatic hydro-sprayer costs about $60. One site suggested chasing the turkeys with a broom and "encouraging" them to go away. You can even purchase a propane cannon for over $200 - I'm getting visions of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner. Funny part is, it seems that holding a camera must be just as good a deterrent as a garden hose, because whenever I try to take a photo of said turkeys (and I have tried on numerous occasions), they scatter or fly away quicker than I can blink. Yes, these huge things actually fly too! And it's not pretty. So here is a photo of the remaining wet turkey tracks on our driveway. The turkeys have vanished...for now anyway. |
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May 2023
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